Page 27 of The Defiant Curse

“Meet Lady MacBeth. We call her MacBeth because she’s no lady. She’s a whore.”

Elizabeth found that amusing too. It was clear they’d had fun naming all of the animals there, and she didn’t blame them. She loved herself a pet.

“I mean, a girl has to do what a girl has to do,” she said, as the horse tried to eat her hair. The whole time, she was petting her neck with affection.

“Well, she does a lot of shit. We’ve just managed to get a saddle on her. She does NOT like that at all.”

Elizabeth put her forehead against the horse’s and took a moment. She loved animals so much, and horses…

God.

They were such wise, peaceful animals.

“I think she’s amazing,” Elizabeth said, as the horse nudged her pocket.

Pulling out a peppermint, one from the greasy diner back in the states where she’d eaten hours ago, she unwrapped it.

The horse went wild.

“Oh, well, you just made a friend. Like I said. She’s easy,” he stated. “Unless it’s a saddle.”

Elizabeth patted the horse’s flank as it ate the peppermint.

“We’re all difficult at times,” she said. “I get it. Tomorrow, I want to ride her. She’s mine now. I’m claiming this horse.”

Michael smiled.

Yeah, and that was why he brought her out here. Sometimes, you just needed an animal to silence those demons, and all of the ones here did a good job of doing just that.

They were a lot of work, but God! He loved each and every one of them.

Moving to the next stall, Hamlet stuck his head out. He was more interested in Michael.

“He’s my baby,” he said, scratching him. “Aren’t you?” he asked.

The horse made noise.

“We saved them,” he stated. “They were at a slaughter auction.”

Elizabeth gasped.

He nodded.

“Yeah, you heard me right. They were going to kill them just because they weren’t ‘perfect’.”

Oh, she didn’t like that.

Not.

At.

All.

“Why?” she asked, not seeing how these animals weren’t absolutely perfect. These two horses were gorgeous.

So, he explained.

“Well, they were selling her off for being vicious toward people, and him for his leg. Apparently, they were working him hard, and not taking care of his hooves. He had a leg injury.”